Yes, I am now two years into my sixtieth decade, not something I always want to admit to when I look at myself in the mirror in the morning and think I look like a hag, but then when the day arrives when the skin is clear, the eyes are bright and I have a good hair day, I think Oh well you don't look toooo bad. Of course, 60+ is now the new 50+ I gather, we are being lured by advertisers and travel agents who want our money, we now have disposable income (well, we did have until perhaps this year and the dreaded credit crunch), we are computer literate, we are Silver Surfers, we are Skiers (Spending Kid's Income), we go on exotic holidays, white water rafting in Iceland, pony trekking in the Andes (not me I hasten to add) and instead of being called Old Age Pensioners we are now Senior Citizens and we have Grey Power. All sounds pretty good doesn't it?
However, when I went to Cambridge today with my good friend Jan and we went to a book fair, and I got down to look at some books and then had to be hauled to my feet by the bookseller, I began to feel perhaps it is not so good after all….
But a lovely day – sun shining, positively spring like and blue skies and it is always a pleasure to stroll around Cambridge. Found a few out of print Josephine Tey at the fair, but really it was one of those fairs where you look and stroke but don't buy because the prices are really a bit high. I came across some of the Adventure books by Enid Blyton with dust covers etc which were going for £150+ so had a look at mine when I got in. I have one first edition so will have to put that in the bank vault with the family silver (egg spoon and cake knife) but the others are second editions so plummet in value immediately. Still, to have one is not bad – add my two first edition signed JK Rowlings and all my original Beatle LPs I may yet be able to afford my trip to Australia.
Bought myself a couple of pressies of course, I mean you have to don't you? The book of the series, The Victorians all about Victorian paintings and how they reflected the age, introduced by Jeremy Paxman in erudite mode, last week he was wandering around Manchester and its fantastic galleries and Town Hall, great stuff but I do wish the BBC would not load every single scene with the racing clouds and the London Symphony Orchestra going like the clappers. Restraint is a word that seems anathema to the producers at the Beeb these days.
And then a few CDs as well, went into Heffers and had a wallow in all the wonderful music available. I am finding that as I get older, I am appreciating chamber music more and more and so bought some Schubert and Beethoven and then treated myself also to some Chopin. All will be downloaded onto my new super duper 16gb iPod for the commute.
And then on the way home, popped into The Food Company, a great food shop in Marks Tey which I don't go into very often as it has the most sumptuous deli counters, wonderful cheeses, bread, local produce and it is a bit pricey but today I came out with some olive bread, a smelly brie practically crawling off the counter and some good coffee. So, that is what I am doing tonight – eating this and watching Wives and Daughters which BBC4 are repeating in huge sections and am enjoying it all over again. One of the best drama serialisation the Beeb has ever done in my humble opinion and Michael Gambon, sublime.
More tomorrow …if I survive. My daughter, Helen, who is taking driving lessons is coming to see me tomorrow and I have purchased some L plates and am allowing her to have a practice drive in my car.
Mother love has no boundaries…
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